Digging Bridge

The Estate of John Outterbridge led by his daughter, Tami Outterbridge, responded to the devastating loss of the artist’s family homes, studio, and archive in the Altadena / Eaton fire by conceiving of the Digging Bridge project. This is a multi pronged project that will ultimately be expressed in exhibitions, a documentary film, the first dedicated John Outterbridge monograph, and community-sourced rebuilt archives.

Often referred to simply as “Bridge,” John Outterbridge was revered as an arts icon in Los Angeles. He is remembered as a pillar of the Black Arts Movement on the West Coast, and also served as Director of the Watts Towers Arts Center for more than 17 years. His works can be found in the permanent collections of museums around the country, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the California African American Museum (CAAM), the Hammer Museum in L.A., the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in NYC, and the National Gallery in D.C., among many others.

Digging Bridge began in March 2025 with the documenting of the excavation of the Outterbridge family homesites. Fiercely resisting her home as a site of “debris,” Tami Outterbridge gathered artists to record through film and photography (Michael B. Garnes) objects and artworks as they were unearthed. John Outterbridge’s friends, former students, and other artists then began creating new works based on their engagement with the sites and the artefacts recovered. There will continue to be “digs” documented until August 14, when the Outterbridge home will be the very last property in Altadena to be cleared by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

To rebuild the John Outterbridge Archive, the project engages the community to share items and materials they may have related to the artist, or his body of work, community activism and global arts legacy. Community contributions can be actual physical items or digital files, photos, etc. Participating community members will have the choice of donating the item to the archive, or simply submitting it for photographing and digitizing so that it can be returned right back to them. 

We are seeking to document artwork, exhibition catalogues, books, photographs, audio and video clips, handwritten or typed notes, statements and correspondence, and much more.  

We also aim to gather oral histories, stories and memories at pop-up recording events modeled on StoryCorps conversations. Opportunities to record oral histories and remembrances will be offered to the community via announced pop-up locations and recording options that can be accessed remotely.  Sign up here to receive “Digging Bridge” announcements.  

Plain Sight Archive is in partnership with “DIGGING BRIDGE” to facilitate the administrative structure for receiving and organizing these community-sourced materials prior to the ultimate placement of the rebuilt archive into its final institutional home.